A. Field of the Invention
The field of the present invention relates generally to apparatuses adapted for use with waste recycling and conversion, especially such apparatuses that can be used with waste compactor/baler machines to improve the operation and efficiency thereof. More specifically, this invention relates to an apparatus for transport of waste materials to the compaction/baler compartment of a compactor/baler used to compact, process or bale waste and other materials.
B. Background
It is well known that it is desirable to recycle, convert or process waste for other uses in order to avoid those wastes being disposed in a landfill, incinerated or otherwise disposed of or processed in an environmentally disruptive or unfriendly manner. For recycling or converting of waste to be effective, however, it is necessary that the waste be separated into like materials and prepared for transport to locations where the waste can be processed into new materials, forms or shapes, or converted for other uses, such as for energy production. The waste handling facilities can be located great distances from the location where the waste is separated and prepared for transport. For instance, it is not uncommon that certain waste materials are separated and collected in one state and transported to another state or even a foreign country for recycling or conversion. Preparation of the waste to make transport easier and less expensive is required for efficient waste recycling or conversion.
Although different waste materials may go through different processes of preparing the waste for transport, the principal concern is how to take the loose waste materials that are delivered to the waste handling facilities and prepare them for transport. Generally, the goal is to make the waste materials easier to handle and less costly to transport. The cost of transport is typically a function of the amount of space and weight required on the truck, train or ship used to move the waste to the place where it is finally recycled or converted by the end user. The more expensive it is to handle the waste and transport it between locations, the more costly the reuse of the waste becomes, both to the intermediate user of the waste and to the end user consumer (for those wastes to be recycled or converted into new products). Despite the best intentions of those in the waste recycling or converting industry, if the processing of the recyclable waste becomes too expensive, relative to the use of new raw materials, then it is likely that the recycling and converting of the waste will lessen and result in more wastes being disposed of or incinerated.
To improve the handling capability and reduce the cost of transport for certain wastes, such as plastic, aluminum and steel beverage containers, cardboard products and newspapers, the waste handlers typically compress the waste to reduce the bulk and then bale, wrap or bind it together with string, rope, plastic or steel wire or other materials. This process is often referred to in the industry as densification. As would be expected, the amount of space required to handle or transport a large number of plastic bottles (as an example) can be significantly reduced by compressing the bottles to densify them by removing the air space therein. This is also true, perhaps to a lesser extent, for many other materials. Naturally, because many of the waste materials are to a certain extent elastic, for the compressing to be effective the compressed waste materials must be bound while they are compressed to prevent the material from elastically rebounding, refilling with air, and significantly increasing in size. Binding the materials also makes it much easier, and in most circumstances much less costly, to transport the materials to other locations for further processing.
The typical method of compressing and binding materials is to use a waste compactor/baler machine located at a waste processing facility or, if the machine is portable, at the location of the waste materials. Waste is placed in the compaction chamber of such machines and compressed with a large, flat platen against the chamber walls of the machine so as to compress the waste material. When the compaction chamber is full, the machine either bales or is configured to allow the operator to bale the compressed waste. One such compactor/baler is the portable, upright Brute Force Model 3600 Compactor/Baler made by MaxPak out of St. Paul, Minn. This compactor/baler receives wastes through a front door into the waste handling compartment where it is flattened by a down stroking platen connected to a piston to provide an advertised compaction force of 27,500 pounds or more. As is standard in the industry, this machine compresses waste materials into 200 to 3,000 pound bales through a series of repetitive raising and lowering of the platen so as to compress the waste (lowering) and allow more waste to be input into the compaction chamber. For exporting purposes via ocean transport, the bales should be compressed into 900 pound minimum weights having dimensions of 60xe2x80x3 width, 30xe2x80x3 length and 48xe2x80x3 to 54xe2x80x3 height, more or less. In general, for such exportation, the heavier the better.
Although the compactor/baler machines currently in use work well to compact waste materials, there are limitations to the efficiency of the machines used in remote or fixed locations. The efficiency limitations are primarily due to the amount of labor and time it takes to place waste materials into the compaction chamber so that they can be compressed. In addition, there are limitations to the inability of the less powerful and expensive balers to produce the heavier export quality bales. The standard procedure is for the operators to place the waste material into the compaction chamber through the chamber door, operate the machine so as to lower the platen and compress the waste, raise the platen and then open the door to repeat the process. As would be expected, this process is both labor intensive and time consuming. The use of any loading device, such as a conveyor belt assembly has the limitation that the conveyor must be moved out of the way prior to unloading the compacted bale from the machine. As a result of the above inefficiencies, the typical compactor/baler machine can compact and bale approximately four bales per day of plastic beverage containers with one worker to fill the compaction chamber and operate the machine.
What is needed is an apparatus for improving the operation and efficiency of compactor/baler machines so as to reduce the amount of labor and time required to make bales of waste. With such an improved apparatus and machine, the number of bales that can be made by a single compactor/baler machine and worker can significantly increase. The use of such an apparatus should significantly reduce the cost of preparing waste for transport to locations where it can be recycled, converted or processed by end users. The reduced cost of preparing the waste for handling and transport can result in a waste product that is more competitive with the use of new raw materials and will thus ensure the viability of recycling and converting waste materials and enhance governmental efforts to significantly reduce the waste stream volume.
The apparatus for use with compactor/baler machines of the present invention provides the benefits and solves the problems identified above. That is to say, the present invention discloses a waste compactor/baler machine that includes an apparatus for collecting the waste material and conveying it to the compaction chamber of the compactor/baler machine and a collecting/conveying apparatus that is adapted for use with standard compactor/baler machines, resulting in greater efficiency. Compared to standard compactor/baler machines, which are relatively low volume and discontinuously operated, the machine of the present invention is capable of higher volume (i.e., four times higher volume) and continuous operation. As an example, the present invention is capable of compacting and baling one bale per hour of plastic beverage containers, compared to the three per day for the currently available machines. In addition, the compactor/baler of the present invention is easier to change for compacting and baling one type of material to compacting and baling another type of material.
With regard to the embodiment of a separate collecting/conveying apparatus that attaches to the compactor/baler machine, the apparatus has a frame with a first (upper) end and a second (lower) end, a hopper compartment attached to the frame, a conveying assembly at the bottom of the hopper compartment and attached to the frame, and one or more wheels at the second end of the frame. The first end of the frame is connected to the compactor/baler machine. The hopper compartment is configured to receive waste materials through the top of the hopper compartment. The conveying assembly has a conveyor belt operatively connected to a motor and is configured so as to convey waste materials through from the hopper compartment into an opening provided in the housing of the compactor/baler machine. In the preferred embodiment, the first end of the frame is configured to attach to the door with a bolted connection and move with the door during the opening and closing of the door to eliminate the need to disconnect and remove the apparatus prior to removing the produced bale from the compactor/baler machine. For ease of use, the apparatus can have one or more hook members at the first end of the frame that are configured to attach to the door. The hopper compartment can have a pair of opposing sides and an end, with the sides extending substantially from the first end of the frame to the second end of the frame.
With regard to the embodiment where the collecting/conveying apparatus is provided with the compactor/baler machine, the apparatus can be either removably or fixedly attached to the compactor/baler machine and generally comprise a hopper compartment and a conveying assembly attached to a frame. The hopper compartment should be configured to easily be able to receive waste materials dumped in by an operator. The conveying assembly has a conveyor belt operatively connected to a motor that is used to provide the power for conveying waste material into the compaction chamber. The first (upper) end of the frame is connected to the compactor/baler machine so the conveyor belt can convey waste materials through the opening. The second (lower) end of the frame has one or more wheels attached thereto to allow the apparatus to pivot or swing out away from the machine when the door is open and back into the closed position when the door is closed. One or more hook or hinged members can be provided at the first (upper) end of the frame for attachment to the opening. The hopper compartment can have a pair of opposing sides that extend substantially the full length of the frame and the conveying assembly operation components can be located at the bottom of the hopper compartment. Paddle members can be provided on the conveyor belt to improve operation of the conveyor.
Accordingly, the primary objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for use with waste compactor/baler machines that increases the waste handling efficiency of such machines by providing for improved delivery of waste materials into the compaction chamber.
It is also an important objective of the present invention to provide an apparatus for use with waste compactor/baler machines that efficiently and effectively delivers waste materials into such machines to increase the number of bales produced in a given time period.
It is also an important objective of the present invention to provide an apparatus for use with waste compactor/baler machines that utilizes a conveyor system that connects or is integral with the machine so as to speed delivery of waste materials into the compaction chamber.
It is also an important objective of the present invention to provide an apparatus for use with waste compactor/baler machines that allows the operator to load waste materials onto a conveyor system to convey the waste materials to the compaction chamber between strokes of the compactor platen so as to improve the speed of compacting and baling the waste and provide continuous baling.
The above and other objectives of the present invention will be explained in greater detail by reference to the attached figures and the description of the preferred embodiment which follows. As set forth herein, the present invention resides in the novel features of form, construction, mode of operation and combination of parts presently described and understood by the claims.